GENEVA AFP: FIFA on Friday hit the Palestinian Football Association chief with a year-long “match” ban after he called for protests against Lionel Messi over plans for Argentina to play Israel in Jerusalem.
FIFA sanctioned PFA president Jibril Rajoub for breaching codes against “inciting hatred and violence, following media statements he gave calling on football fans to target the Argentinian Football Association and burn jerseys and pictures of Lionel Messi.”
Rajoub had demanded that Barcelona star Messi not take part in the pre-World Cup friendly against Israel scheduled for June 9 and called on fans to burn shirts bearing his name if he did.
He told a June 3 press conference that Messi “has tens of millions of fans in the Arab and Muslim countries, we ask everyone to burn their shirts which bear his name and posters (with his image)”.